To counter injuries related to electric scooter accidents, the Academy of Medicine makes several recommendations, including the obligation to wear a helmet.
- Most scooter accidents are linked to isolated falls, says the Academy of Medicine.
- In 2021, 908,000 units were sold in France, compared to 640,000 the previous year, an increase of 42% according to the Federation of Micro-Mobility Professionals (FP2M).
Electric scooters are everywhere on public roads and accidents have been on the rise for the past few years. In 2021, 24 users of motorized personal transport devices were killed, compared to 7 in 2020 and 10 in 2019, according to figures from the Road safety.
The helmet protects during falls on the head
In addition to deaths, injuries are also to be deplored, which prompted the Academy of Medicine to refer to a “public health issue” and to demand the wearing of a compulsory helmet, in a report published on December 13. Indeed, it is often the head that is affected first, since most falls take place forward: “the cephalic extremity is more often affected in electric scooter accidents than in bicycle accidents where the fall occurs laterally“, warns the Academy. And while it is recommended, the wearing of a helmet was absent in nine cases analyzed out of ten, the institution is alarmed.
Electric scooters: arm injuries are common
The upper limbs are also very exposed: various injuries, fractures of the elbow, forearm, wrist, etc. This is why the Academy of Medicine also recommends making the wearing of gloves compulsory and encouraging the wearing of protective elements. In addition, it calls for raising the minimum age for drivers to 16, setting up basic training in schools, requiring minors to have a certificate of proficiency to drive a rental electric scooter and finally, to organize awareness campaigns on the risks of using electric scooters. It also encourages public authorities toenforce existing regulations” and to “take this new mode of mobility into account in future urban development“.
